Graphic novels have always been a major attraction for Raj Sen, who pursued a BFA in Acting at the New York Film Academy, Los Angeles Institute. As given, acting and direction courses involve some writing too; Raj had the opportunity to write certain special papers—scriptwriting, etc.—which honed his writing skills.

“I have had a great liking for action genre movies since childhood; I decided to create my own action-packed thriller in the form of a novel,” says the author of his first book, In Raydiant Shadows, recently launched in Kolkata. “The writing triggered after watching the web series Reacher Season based on Lee Child’s debut novel Killing Floor in 2022.”

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The book launched by Ahava Communications Readers and Writers Club (helmed by Mona Sengupta and Sushroota Sarkar), which has brought writers and readers together on a literary platform, witnessed a lively discussion around the book recently. Filmmaker and film scholar Ashoke Viswanathan asked the author several probing questions, including his preference for an efficient albeit vulnerable protagonist in the fashion of Batman.

Raj confesses he is strongly influenced by Christopher Nolan’s version of Batman, who seemed more human than the all-powerful Superman. Viswanathan referred to the soundtrack as well as to the delicate phraseology that made the film come to life, which finds a resonance in the novel, as it were.

The novel is about the lead character, Aniruddha Ray, who faces a number of ordeals in solving the case he has been assigned. However, amidst feelings of quitting, the lead character always finds a ray of hope that keeps him going. With seven scientists dead at Wesner Chemicals, Detective Ray finds himself immersed in the most challenging case of his LAPD tenure. Joined by fellow officer Wendy, their investigation plunges them into the perilous underbelly of California’s criminal world. Racing against time, Ray must uncover the truth before more lives are lost. But Ray is unprepared for the shocking revelations ahead: an intricate struggle for power and a mystery.

Shadows are usually obscure. However, the ray of hope that keeps the lead character going is justified through the title. Moreover, the word radiant is spelt as ‘raydiant’ to include the name of the lead character in the title. An engrossing tale of good versus evil, this gripping story promises to keep readers in suspense until the very last page.

It is not hard to guess that this young writer whose father always encouraged him to write was brought up on Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie in addition to classics by Charles Dickens and Mark Twain, and books like The Invisible Man, The Three Musketeers and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, among others. It was only as a young adult that Raj started reading novels of the action genre and was completely hooked.

The book published by the Kolkata-based independent publisher Boichitra is the first fiction thriller. Says Chayanika Chakraborty of Boichitra, ‘It is a pleasure to do books we feel are waiting to be published. We were delighted to do Raj’s book because he sees the world through his young, fresh eyes.”

She reasons that although publishing involves investments and distribution, by keeping things tight and focused, the modest successes have kept the publishing house afloat since 2016. “It is all about passion and diverting money we may spend in other useless areas,” she adds.

Although Raj is trained in acting, having acted in some short films in Los Angeles, out of which one named Forbidden Love is available on Amazon Prime, US and UK editions, he is already plotting his next novel.

“It is going to be a sequel to this one,” is all that he is willing to divulge for now.

The writer is a freelance journalist